Weasand separator



May 2, 1950 w. J. HINCKS WEASAND SEPARATOR Filed June 19, 1948 Patented May 2, 1950 TENT OFFICE WEASAND SEPARATOR William .lohn Hincks, Norwood, Manitoba, Canada, assignor to Canada Packers Limited, St. Boniface, Manitoba, Canada Application June 19, 1948, Serial No. 3 1,047

3 Claims.

My invention consists of new and useful improvements in the evisoeration of butchered animals, an object of the invention being to provide a device of the character herewithin described whereby the weasand may readily be separated from the oesophagus prior to disembowelling.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character herewithin described which provides means for grasping firmly the severed end of the weasand thereby facilitating the separation thereof from the oesophagus.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device of the character herewithin described whereby the weasand may be separated from the oesophagus while the carcass of the animal is travelling upon an overhead moving rail under which conditions the neck of the animal is relatively close to the floor thus making it impossible for the operator to manipulate the conventional implement in order to separate the weasand from the oesophagus.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device of the character herewithin described which may be actuated pneumatically, hydraulically, or mechanically.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a device of the character herewithin described which is economical to manufacture, and rapid in operation, thereby resulting in a substantial saving of time and labor.

With the foregoing objects in view, and such other objects and advantages as will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which this invention relates as this specification proceeds,

my invention consists essentially in the arrange- K ment and construction of parts all as hereinafter more particularly described, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is a side elevational view of my device.

Figure 2 is a sectional view along the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view of my device as shown in the act of separating the weasand from the oesophagus.

In the drawings like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the different figures.

In the process of evisceration of animals it is necessary to ensure that the weasand is removed together with the stomach without rupture, otherwise there is the possibility of the stomach contents contaminating the flesh of the animal. The weasand, which passes through the neck to the stomach, is attached to the oesophagus by means of fatty tissue and the like, and has to be separated therefrom before disem bcwelling is undertaken in order to prevent this possibility occurring.

The separation is accomplished by means of an elongated rod having a metal ring rigidly attached approximately at right angles to one end thereof which, with one hand, is slipped over the end of the weasand extending from the neck of the animal after it is decapitated. The end of the weasand is then grasped by the other hand and the rod forced downwardly into the neck cavity, thereby separating the weasand fromthe oesophagus.

Due to the extremely slippery nature of the weasand, considerable difiiculty is experienced by the operator in maintaining a firm grasp thereon, and so considerable time is lost which affects substantially the efliciency of the modern meat packing plant.

Consequently in an endeavour to overcome the foregoing difficulties, I have designed my novel weasand separator, and upon reference to the accompanying drawings it will be observed that it consists of the following parts.

A piston rod I is positioned within the cylinder 2, actuated by compressed air or hydraulic fluid entering from a main supply via the nozzle 3. The flow of the piston actuating fluid is controlled by means of the trip lever 4 which actuates a valve (not illustrated) carried on the bracket 5, and is routed via the valve to the inlet conduit 6 situated substantially toward the rearward end of the cylinder.

The piston rod I carries the weasand separator component i on the distal end thereof to which is attached substantially at right angles the weasand separator ring 8. In this embodiment it will be seen that the ring is rigidly connected to the component I by means of the pin 9 on the perimeter thereof and is supported by the throat H) which extends partially around the perimeter as clearly shown in Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings.

The ring 5 is substantially in alignment with the hand operated vise clamp II which is rigidly connected to the cylinder by means of the encircling sleeve l2. The vise clamp, which is of conventional construction, is provided with the serrated jaws l3, the relationship of which is controlled by the knurled screw it situated in the rear end of the clamp, and it will be appreciated that movement of the hand lever l5 downwardly in relation to Figure 1, will cause the jaws to lever 4 thereby extending the piston rod from the cylinder. This causes the ring to travel along between the weasand ii and the oesophagus l8 thereby severing the adjoining tissue.

The piston rod can be returnedto the retracted position of Figure 1 either b cacompressionspring (not illustrated) on the underside of the piston, or similar means.

Since various modifications can be made in my invention as hereinabove described, and 'many apparently widely different embodiments of same .made within thespiritiandzsoope of the claims without departing from-such spiriteand scope,; it

:is intended that all matter contained in :the aocompanying specification shalltbeinterpreted as 'illustrativeon'ly and not in a; limiting sense.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. An eviscerating implement 'for separating the weasand'from the oesophagus comprisingrin combination with a source .of fluid power a cylinder, a piston therein, projecting therefrom at one end thereof, a weasand encircling ring on the exterior end of said piston, and a weasand clamp on the side of said cylinder having the jaws thereof directed towards said ring.

2. In the art of evisceration, means for separating the weasand from the oesophagus com- ;prising in combination-a cylinder, apiston therein, projected therefrom at one end 1 thereof, a weasand encircling ring secured to said piston at ,a point on its perimeter and projecting at right anglestherefrom, a weasand clamp on the side of said cylinder having the jaws thereof di- ;rected towards saidring, and a source of power "for saidpiston and cylinder.

-3. An eviscerating implement for separating .the weasand from the oesophagus comprising in combination with a source of fluid power, a cylinder, a piston therein, projecting therefrom at one end thereof, a weasand encircling ring seicuredto saidpistoniat a point on its perimeter and projecting at right angles therefrom, and ia weasandrclarnp on the side of said cylinder having the'jaws'thereof directed towards said ring,

said clampea-nd said ring being substantially in alignment one with the other.

-WILLIAM JOHN HI'NCKS.

No references cited. 

